The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1887-02-03
asss
was stqrmlng the WORKS.

Col. Ro-er ". Hanson, OF the Second Con-
tolerate Kentucky, ie.i the aGlvance. But
when they reached the risa5 1t was too late.
The Federal forces were already in possession.
Hanson YVES a brave and accomplished Con-
Tolerate o1lcer. Il is Interesting to know
laat he and Buclner, both fighting men,
deemed he surrender OF Fort Doneison -
necessity after tlias Hanson says in his re-
port:
II viii take the liberty 70 adj that up tothe.
time wbea we were ordered back TO the
trenches our success was complete and cur
escape secure.
1T is also my opinion t,let t;se exhaustion
0s the men fro:n labor and loss OF slctp, to-s
either with the decentralization caused by thes
I1ss OF our tT'enches on the right, rendered.
tie surrender Unavoidable
When NIGHT closed in Wallace too had donee
his vork-rc.yained the lost ground and
cleared the hill just when that was doae.s
and he was within @ few hundred feet of this
Confederate intreachments, he received an
order from Grant TO halt and fan hack Wal,
| laea disobeyod the order. lie felt sure the
general did not know his movement had been
successful. So he took his own head for it.
and bivouacked on the field, Just where he
was, close TO the Confelerates, ready in the
morning to be up and at tecn. But when
| morning came the suns first rays shonc upon
/ a bugler, carrying a white flag FROM Buckner
! to Grant Buckner'S message proposed the
/ appointment of commissioners 10 agree upon
| terms OF capitalization. Grants reply has be-
| come historic:
NO terms viii be granted except an uncoit-
! disional and immediate surrender. propose
/ TO move Immediately upon your works.
Buckner wrote back: "The distribution Of
| the forces under my command, incident 70
/ an unexpected change of commanders, and
! tho overwhelming force under your COIN
| mand, compel me. notwithstanding the brill
liant success OF tho Confederate arms yester-
day, to accept the ungenerolIs and unchival-
rous terms which you propose
| So on that Sunday morning, Feb. 10, 1852,
the Confederate forces surrendered to Grant,
and the story of Fort Donelon was told.
Buckner had good reason to be in an I'M
| pleasant frame OF mind that morning. At
midnight the night before n council OF war
| was held between himself and Pillow and
| Floytl BuckIier told them his men could not
| stand more than half nn hours lighting.
| Hunger, cold and exhaustion had done their
work at last. Besides, there was no moro
| ammunition. II his men tried TO escape
three-quarters OF them must be lost TO save
the other quarter. Surrender was the only
thing.
Floyd and Pillow said they would not sur
render, they would die first. Then Floyd
| handed over the supreme command OF tho
fort to Pillow, who in turn transferred It to
| Bucl.ncr, who surrendered the fort. Pillow,
with some Of his immediate personal com
| nland, crossed the river upon scow ard
made good his escape. Two small steamers
from up the river came about daylight TO the
landing They took Floyd and some of his
men up the river. Forrest and his cavalry
essraped GA horseback. The two steamers COLI
| taincd Conf sIcfate rc-euforccInents,w who We're
dumped ont upon shore. Then Floyd's men
boarded the boats. The conduct of himself
ant Pillow was regarded as misoldierly, and
was made the subject OF searching investi-
cation from the Confederate government In
an official letter 10 the Confederate secretary
Of war; Pillow thought that, considering the
sacrifices be had made for the ConfedeTacy,
and "the large and dependent family of
grown tIp ami unmarried daughters on his
hands, lac had been very shabbiIy treated.
OF the forces engaged in this great fight
there were of C0nfeGeratcs, al told, some
| thing oven. 1860; OF Tederals, 1900. The
best estimate OF the Confederate killed and
wounded ulal1rs them about aCOo OF the
Union forces She killed, wounded and missing
afraIpsotatl :}.S-l.
The troops % Grants army at Done ls0n
/ wore mostly western men, many of them
froIn Illinois and Indiana. One remarkable
fact in this iighs Is tae rJlu1ncl' OF men who
| aiterwargl hacaIIc distinguished that took
pert il t. Hundreds OF mon. aftervaIu
famous both IN military aud cIv+E Lfs fought
there on those fsteful days.